


Back Again

by Stes65 (orphan_account)



Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Character Development, Light Angst, M/M, NOT a Hogwarts AU, Slow Build, Squibs, jinyoung is kind of a brat in the beginning, yugyeom's parents play a big role in this as well
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-09
Updated: 2016-12-04
Packaged: 2018-08-30 01:45:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8513929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/Stes65
Summary: "It wasn’t exactly unexpected, was it?”, Jinyoung said eventually, voice hard. Yugyeom flinched at the words. Of course it wasn’t, but that didn’t make it any less painful. Obviously Jinyoung hadn’t come to make him feel better, or comfort him, he’d just come to make Yugyeom feel worse. That was something he was good at. “So? Are you gonna laugh at me some more? I saw you in the Great Hall!”, Yugyeom accused him hotly. That wasn’t entirely true. He’d seen Jinyoung’s friends laughing, he’d never seen Jinyoung’s face.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I basically ship every Yugeom pairing (who am I kidding, I ship every Yugyeom pairing) and Jingyeom is one of my favorites, bc their bickering literally gives me life. 
> 
> Before you start reading I do think you do need some additional information, even if you are familiar with the HP universe. 
> 
> -Yugyeom is a squib, which means he can't perform magic, while his parents can. This often gets discussed, so don't worry.  
> -Jinyoung is a pureblood wizard, with conservative parents (think of him as having grown up in a draco malfoy-esque situation).  
> -Jinyoung and Yugyeom are only two years apart in this fic. 
> 
>  
> 
> This is unbeta'd and since english is not my native language there might be some grammar mistakes here and there.

Yugyeom's parents had been desperate. It wasn't really a surprise with them both being wizards, that they'd want Yugyeom to also be one. That's why they send him to the wizarding school, even though he’d given no sign whatsoever of being able to perform magic and receiving no letter.

 

On the train he sat with some first years, who excitedly talked about Quidditch. Yugyeom participated, be it less enthusiastic, falling completely quiet when they talked about their experiences riding a broom stick. Yugyeom had tried multiple times to ride one, under pressure of his father. They broom hadn't once flown up. He'd just jumped around mike an idiot with a broom between his legs.

 

"'I’ll be sure to proof my worth, then I'll be the first first year Quidditch player since Harry Potter!"

 

Yugyeom looked up at the mention of that name, joining the conversation again. Yugyeom had read all about him and he couldn't help but idolize him. He prayed he could at least somewhat be like him.

 

\---

 

 

"Gryffindor!"

 

The boy who'd boasted about his Quidditch skills, BamBam his brain supplied, grinned widely and stepped towards the sheering table.

 

"Kim Yugyeom!", Neville Longbottom, the current Herbology teacher, said loudly.

 

Yugyeom swallowed and sat down on the chair, hoping…no, praying that he at least had a drop of magic in him and that he'd be sorted.

His eyes caught a pair of familiar ones. Jinyoung smiled at him from the Slytherin table. Jinyoung was his neighbor and best friend, he'd gone to school two years prior. When Yugyeom heard he got sorted into Slytherin he hadn't been surprised at all.

 

Not because his family was a long line of pureblood, but because whenever they played and fought Jinyoung was almost always the victor. Be it verbally or physically, Jinyoung was the boss and they both knew it.

 

But even though they fought a lot, they did also get along, that was why Jinyoung was now smiling encouragingly at him. Yugyeom got a little comfort out of that. If Jinyoung, a Pureblood, believed he could do it then surely there had to be a chance.

 

The hat was placed on his head , covering almost half his face.

 

"Sadly you possess no magical abilities, therefor I cannot sort you into your rightful house.", the hat almost immediately said.

 

Yugyeom's heart sank. His parents were going to be so disappointed.

 

“What about you? Aren’t you disappointed you’re a squib?”, the sorting head asked. Yugyeom thought about it and realized with a start that he’d never thought about it that way. How did he feel about not being a wizard? His parents’ feelings had always been more important to him.

 

“How about you take me off, give me back to professor Longbottom and tell him what I told you”, the hat said, and despite his booming voice Yugyeom knew it was meant to be comforting. Yugyeom felt a stab of dread go through him. This was so humiliating. He’d gone to a wizarding school, desperate as he was, only to turn out to be a squib.

 

He swallowed and slowly pulled the hat off his head and, his eyes still being at the same level as before he’d put it on, immediately looked into Jinyoung’s eyes. Even though he deadpanned back, Yugyeom still saw the disappointment in his eyes, the distaste almost. If this was his reaction, then Yugyeom didn’t even want to see his parents’s.

 

The Hall started murmuring as Yugyeom got of the stool and gave the hat back to Longbottom.

 

“What is it? Nervous? Don’t worry, you’ll get sorted eventually, sometimes it might take-“, Longbottom stopped talking when he noticed the look on Yugyeom’s face.

 

“Oh, you’re not…Okay, come with me then”, Longbottom said quietly.

 

He gave the hat to another teacher and grabbed Yugyeom’s hand, pulling him out of the Hall through a door behind them. Yugyeom was thankful he didn’t have to go through the door he and the other students entered through. He looked back one more time towards the Slytherin table and saw Jinyoung had turned away, towards some of his friends that were obviously sniggering at Yugyeom’s pathetic attempt to fit in.

 

“You know what? It’s not that bad. What’s so good about being a wizard anyways? Besides, haven’t you been going to muggle school already?”, Longbottom said, whist pulling Yugyeom through the castle.

 

Yugyeom had been going to muggle school and it had been pretty great, besides his parents constantly talking down on it and telling him how much better Hogwarts would be for him.

 

“My parents are going to be so disappointed”, Yugyeom said thickly. Longbottom’s grip on his hand tightened.

 

“I was almost a squib as well. My grandma, she was the one who raised me, was like that too. She threatened to disown me if I turned out to be a squid”, he said.

 

“But you didn’t”, Yugyeom protested.

 

“I didn’t”, Longbottom said patiently, “ but my point is that, when I asked her later if she’d really have disowned me she said that she would have never done that. Because I’m family and whether I do or don’t have magic power wouldn’t change that fact.”

 

Yugyeom swallowed, nearly stumbling on one of the stairs they were walking up on.

 

“Sorry. You okay, Yugyeom?”, Longbottom asked, pausing for a bit and letting go of Yugyeom’s hand.

 

“I’m better now, thank you”, he said genuinely. Longbottom smiled at him and motioned for him to follow.

 

Once they arrived at their destination, after having climbed about twenty stairs, Longbottom told him to sit down and wait for a while. Yugyeom obeyed and looked around. This must be the Headmistresses office.

Yugyeom was almost disappointed not to see Dumbledore’s famous Fenix, but then he realized that it made sense he wasn’t there. Fenix’s were extremely loyal to their master and often died when their owner passed away.

 

After about ten minutes Longbottom arrived again, McGonagall joining him.

 

“Kim Yugyeom. We’re going to inform your parents you’re going back home. Were your parents aware this might happen?”, McGonagall asked abruptly. Yugyeom stood up and nodded.

 

“So you’ve never shown any sign of being able to perform magic and they still send you here?”, she asked disbelievingly. Yugyeom looked at the ground and nodded again.

 

“I can’t believe some people…Okay, I’ll send a Patronus inquiring them to come to Hogwarts through fireplace”, she snapped.

 

She did and five minutes later his parents plopped out, looking close to desperate.

“Professor McGonagall, is there really no way he’s not a Squib? Couldn’t the Sorting Hat have made a mistake?”, his mother immediately asked, without even looking at Yugyeom. McGonagall’s jaw set and she turned towards Longbottom.

“Professor, get mister Kim out of here, please. I need to have a chat with his parents.”

 

Longbottom nodded and gently grabbed Yugyeom’s shoulder, steering him out of the office.

 

Longbottom brought him to an empty classroom, comforting him for a while before leaving with the promise of getting him hot chocolate. Yugyeom, who’d stubbornly been trying to keep his tears in (a hard task), finally gave in to the desire to cry and buried his face in his hands.

 

His parents hadn’t even looked at him. Were they that ashamed? What if they really would disown him? What then? Why did this have to happen to him?

 

The door opened again and Yugyeom quickly looked away and wiped the tears from his face. When he turned back he noticed with a start that the person who had entered wasn’t Neville Longbottom, but Park Jinyoung. The last person Yugyeom wanted to see right now.

 

“Why are you here, hyung?”, he asked, hating how vulnerable his voice sounded. It only added to his shame. Whenever they fought Yugyeom always made sure Jinyoung didn’t see his tears, storming to his house or hiding in the bathroom whenever he felt them come up.

 

Jinyoung was looking at him with an unreadable expression. Yugyeom fidgeted under his gaze, unsure on how to act.

 

“It wasn’t exactly unexpected, was it?”, Jinyoung said eventually, voice hard. Yugyeom flinched at the words. Of course it wasn’t, but that didn’t make it any less painful. Obviously Jinyoung hadn’t come to make him feel better, or comfort him, he’d just come to make Yugyeom feel worse. That was something he was good at.

 

“So? Are you gonna laugh at me some more? I saw you in the Great Hall!”, Yugyeom accused him hotly. That wasn’t entirely true. He’d seen Jinyoung’s friends laughing, he’d never seen Jinyoung’s face.

"What are you-? I would never-", Jinyoung sputtered whilst stepping closer to Yugyeom. Yugyeom shook his head, getting off the chair. The hurt and shame he felt coursing through him caused him to say the next words.

 

"Yes, you would! You would cause you're a pureblood!", Yugyeom said loudly. The moments the words had left his mouth he wished he could take them back. Jinyoung froze and Yugyeom nervously swallowed when he noticed his trembling hands curling into fists.

The expression he wore when he finally spoke was one Yugyeom always dreaded when they fought. He hadn't seen it in a while, but it still made his heartbeat speed up nervously. He suppressed the urge to cover his ears.

 

"Well, at least I'm not a disappointment to my parents.", Jinyoung hissed cruelly.

 

Yugyeom felt as though Jinyoung had hit him. Never had he been this mean to him. Yugyeom felt tears gather in his eyes again and this time he couldn’t hide anywhere. He didn't want to try finding a place to hide in the huge castle either.

 

"Yugyeom-", Jinyoung started, voice still rough.

 

"Leave me alone", he said, desperately trying not to burst into tears again.

 

"Yugyeom, I-."

 

"Leave! Leave me alone! I don't want you here!", Yugyeom yelled thickly, as two tears rolled down his cheeks.

 

"...Fine."

With that Jinyoung turned around and all but broke the door with the force he slammed it close with.

 

Yugyeom was left staring at the door, dully realizing that he might have just lost one of his best friends.

 

By the time Longbottom arrived Yugyeom had at least somewhat calmed down, staring at one of the moving paintings.

 

"Is Jinyoung not with you?", he asked, sounding surprised. Yugyeom took the cup and tightened his grip by mention of his name.

 

"No, why?", he asked, voice too high.

 

"Well, I came across him about ten minutes ago. He asked me where you were. He seemed really worried about you."

 

Yugyeom seriously doubted that. Why would someone who was worried just make things worse?

 

"He didn't come?"

 

Yugyeom shook his head, dead set on forgetting the conversation had happened. Just the memory of it made his heart ache already. He drank a sip from the drink he'd just gotten and nearly burned his tongue.

 

When Longbottom brought him back to the office twenty minutes later Yugyeom's parents looked ashamed.

"Come here, Yugyeomie. Let's go home. Dad'll figure it out, okay?", Yugyeom's dad said, pulling Yugyeom into a short hug.

 

Yugyeom nodded and followed his dad into the fireplace after having thanked and said goodbye to McGonagall and Longbottom.

\---

 

Yugyeom continued going to muggle school. Yugyeom had a strong suspicion McGonagall was the cause of this, since his parents always grumbled about it. Although the tension was high the first few months, his parents seemed to have accepted the fact he was a squib.

 

Although he did sometimes catch his mom looking at him sadly or his dad looking at his broomstick with a strange kind of melancholy they didn't talk about magic often whenever he was in the neighborhood. They never verbally expressed their disappointment anymore either, which made things easier for Yugyeom as well.

 

Things were better than Yugyeom could have hoped for, he came home with good grades, something which his dad, a half blood, had learned to appreciate, had a decent amount of friends and never really missed magic.

 

The only thing bugging him was the whole Jinyoung situation. Things weren't resolved. Jinyoung never came to search for him and Yugyeom didn't either. Yugyeom hated the way their friendship had ended in such an abrupt way, hated the things they'd said to each other.

 

So without having any friends that were wizards or witches and his parents not talking about magic anymore Yugyeom almost forgot about the fact he was actually supposed to be a wizard.

 

The first time he was painfully reminded of that fact has when one of his best friends, Jackson, came to his house when he was thirteen. Yugyeom had, stupidly, told him he could just enter through the back door when he arrived at Yugyeom’s.

 

Yugyeom quickly ran down the stairs when he heard yelling. He found his mother pointing her wand at a terrified Jackson.

 

“Mom, what are you doing?”, he yelled, placing himself in front of his friend.

 

“He saw! This muggle saw me performing magic!”, she shrieked. Yugyeom turned towards Jackson, who was staring at the wand with obvious fear.

 

“Yugyeom-ah. I’m sorry”, Jackson said, sounding very small and childish suddenly. His large eyes seemed in even bigger in their panic.

 

“Well, so what? Someone was bound to find out”, Yugyeom said after giving Jackson a small, comforting smile.

 

“We have to let the Ministry know. We-“, Yugyeom’s mother muttered. She stopped talking when Yugyeom’s father burst into the room as well.

 

“What on earth is going on here?”

 

“The muggle. Honey, the muggle-“, she started. Yugyeom’s father cast one look at the terrified Jackson before realizing what was going on.

 

“Yugyeom, take Jackson upstairs and try to calm him down. I’ll talk to your mother.”, he said.

 

Yugyeom nodded and grabbed Jackson’s hand, pulling him up the stairs. Jackson followed, abnormally quiet.

 

They sat down on the bed, the only sound that could be heard being the generic soundtrack of the game Yugyeom had been playing.

“I’m sorry we scared you, hyung”, Yugyeom apologized eventually.

 

“What is going on, Yugyeomie? Why could your mom-? Is this some kind of joke? Because if it is, then it’s one even I can’t appreciate”, Jackson said weakly.

 

“No joke, hyung. I guess I should explain, huh?”, Yugyeom said with a small sigh.

 

“You guess?”, Jackson said disbelievingly. Yugyeom smiled slightly at the high-pitched words.

 

“Okay, so…my parents, they’re wizards. They can perform magic, which is what you saw my mother do, probably”, Yugyeom said, painfully aware of the fact he was breaking at least three different wizarding laws  
by telling Jackson, a muggle, all this. Jackson stared at him for a while, disbelief clearly written on his face. Yugyeom tried to look as genuine as possible.

 

“Yugyeom, I know I may seem a little clueless sometimes, but this is such a blatant lie-“, Jackson snapped. This was the first time Yugyeom had seen Jackson like this, so distant and cold. He guessed it was to be expected after having been scared and threatened like that. Yugyeom was also pretty sure he wouldn’t believe himself either.

 

“No. I’m not lying. I can prove it to you!”, Yugyeom said, looking around the room for anything useful. His eye fell on the daily prophet. He quickly went to grab it and showed it to Jackson. Jackson stared at the moving pictures, almost dropping the paper when he touched one and the woman on the picture angrily swatted at his finger.

 

“Wha-? How? This doesn’t-“, Jackson stuttered. It was quiet for a total of ten (horrible, nerve-wrecking) second and then Jackson looked up with a grin, all the fear and anger seemingly forgotten.

 

“Oh my god, this is so cool! Yugyeomie, the pictures are moving. They’re actually moving!”

 

Yugyeom could finally calm down. He willed his hands to stop trembling and told himself he wasn’t going to lose another best friend today.

“Yugyeom, look! Look”, Jackson said loudly, poking at the photograph of a bunch of wizards, they all scrambled away from his finger, clearly grumbling as they went back to their original places.

 

“Oh man, this is so great!”, Jackson giggled. Yugyeom said down next to him again, smiling a little at Jackson enthusiasm.  
“How old are you again?”, he asked. Jackson turned to him with an semi offended expression.

 

“Old enough for you to be respectful to me, excuse you.”

 

Yugyeom grinned when Jackson turned back to the paper.

 

“So what else can you do?”, the older boy asked, still busy annoying the people in the photograph.

 

“Me? Not much. I’m a squib”, Yugyeom replied, already long past the point of feeling ashamed anymore. Jackson looked at him with a blank expression.

 

“I should probably elaborate. So…I’m a squib. That means my parents are wizards, but I’m not. I can’t perform magic. It doesn’t occur often, but it does occur”, Yugyeom shrugged. Jackson nodded gravely.

 

“Can it also be the other way around? Can normal people also have a child that can perform magic, while they can’t?”, Jackson asked, looking almost hopeful.

 

“Yes, that can happen. They’re called Muggleborns. But there’s no way you’re one. You’d have gotten a letter in Hong Kong when you were eleven”, Yugyeom explained. Jackson pouted.

 

“Hey, I don’t make the rules”, he said, putting his hands up in a disarming matter and falling backwards on the bed.

 

He hoped his father could calm his mother down and convince her not to call the Ministry. He’d really like one of his friends knowing about the wizarding world. He was low key glad it had been Jackson and not Youngjae who’d walked in on his mother performing magic. He was certain he’d still be calming his other friend down if that had been the case.

 

“Your mother called me a muggle just now. Is that like an insult or-?”

 

Yugyeom looked up at Jackson. The other boy was looking at him with almost wary eyes.

 

“Nah, it’s just what wizards call people who can’t perform magic or you know…normal people”, Yugyeom explained. The older boy looked content again.

 

“Then aren’t you a muggle as well? I mean, you’re normal”, Jackson said.

 

“No. I’m a squib, remember?”

 

Jackson blinked a couple of times.

 

“But you can’t perform magic either. Why would you be called a squib?”

 

“Well, my parents can perform magic and I can’t, so that’s why I’m called a squib…”, Yugyeom said, trailing off when he realized that Jackson was right. Why should he be called a squib? He was just a normal person, so why should he be called something so dehumanizing?

 

“But why ‘squib’?”, Jackson said the term with a face that showed clear distaste ,“It sounds so… insulting? Why not something like ‘muggleborn’ but then the other way around?... ‘Wizardborn’! “, Jackson said, looking pretty proud of himself for coming up with the term.

 

A long silence followed in which Yugyeom processed everything Jackson had just said. Surely ‘Squib’ wasn’t an insult? But…when Yugyeom thought about it, it really did sound like one. What if ‘Squib’ was actually the same as ‘Mudblood’? What if people had actually been insulted hundreds of years ago when wizards called them that?

 

Jackson’s face fell when he noticed Yugyeom’s expression.

 

“Oh no, don’t be upset. I was just thinking out loud. I didn’t actually mean it! ‘Squib’ sounds very nice! It has a certain charm to it”, Jackson lied frantically. Yugyeom was about to tell him that he was right when the  
door opened.

It was Yugyeom’s dad, he quietly joined them on the bed.

 

“I talked to your mom and I convinced her not to call the Ministry”, he said seriously. Yugyeom sighed in relief.

 

“But in return Jackson has to promise to never talk about the things he saw”, he continued, giving Jackson a stern look. Jackson sat up a little straighter.

 

“Jackson, can you promise me that?”

 

“Yes, of course”, Jackson said, uncharacteristically serious as well. Yugyeom’s dad didn’t seem convinced.

 

“I really need your word on this, Jackson. If you talk it could mean a lot of problems for my family, as well as yours. Do you want this responsibility? I can still call the Ministry, make you forget any of this ever  
happened”, Yugyeom’s father said sternly.

 

Jackson nodded and said: “I give you my word. I won’t tell a soul even if my life depended on it. I’ll gladly take responsibility.”

 

“Sheesh dad, what does the poor guy have to say to convince you he won’t talk. Make him do an unbreakable vow, why don’t you”, Yugyeom said jokingly.

 

“I didn’t actually mean that, don’t consider that”, he said immediately after when he saw the twinkle in his father’s eye.

 

“I wasn’t…anyway, I’ll go talk to your mother, before she loses it and obliviates Jackson herself”, his father said with a small smile. Yugyeom gave him one back and fell backwards again when his dad left the room.

 

“Okay, I didn’t understand half of the words you two just said and I’m pretty sure it’s not just because of the language barrier”, Jackson said dryly.

 

“Don’t worry about it”, Yugyeom murmured, suddenly very tired after one of the most stressful half hour of his life.

 

“Um, I’m worrying-”, Jackson said, voice two octaves too high again and Yugyeom smiled.

 

 

“Jackson?”, Yugyeom asked later that evening when they were both laying down in Yugyeom’s bed, ready to let sleep take over.

Jackson let out a quiet groan.

 

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me for something like this, Yugyeomie”, the Chinese boy sighed, grabbing Yugyeom’s hand and giving it a small squeeze.

 

\----

 

The next time he was reminded was when he was sixteen. It was when an owl landed suddenly on the sill of his bedroom window. Yugyeom stared at it for a while, confused out of his mind, because why would an owl be at his window in the middle of the day?

 

Then he remembered who he was and which world he should have been a part of and he stood up, opening the window and taking the letter the owl had obviously brought him. He opened it with mild curiosity, the curiosity quickly turning into horror when he read the short but clear letter.

 

 _Dear mister Kim_  
Due to the recent activities of neo-deatheaters we have decided to contact you. Reliable sources have informed us that you know and live close to one of our prime suspects Park Jinyoung. We would like to request of you to keep an eye on him and inform us of his activities. Seeing as you are a squib and a childhood friend of his, chances are small he’ll suspect you. We thank you for your cooperation and hope to hear back from you soon.  
Ministry of Magic

 

Yugyeom’s thoughts were all over the place for a while. Neo-deatheaters? Since when were those a thing? And Jinyoung being one of them? A prime suspect at that. The thought of the Jinyoung he remembered being a deatheater was almost laughable.

 

But then again, Yugyeom hadn’t spoken to the guy in five years. He’d caught some glimpses through his window and had one time stepped out of his front door just when Jinyoung was about to enter his. They’d looked into each other’s eyes for a millisecond before both quickly looking away. Yugyeom had cursed himself after for not just giving the older wizard a friendly nod and going his merry way.

 

Who knew what he’d been up to. People could change a lot in five years, Yugyeom knew from experience. Especially with the right, or in Jinyoung’s apparent case, wrong, friends.

 

Yugyeom stared at the letter, knowing very well that what the Ministry asked him to do was very wrong. They were, for all they knew, asking him to spy on a friend. He decided to ask his parents.

 

"Yugyeomie, this is amazing. The Ministry, the actual Ministry, contacted you!", his mom said when he showed her the letter, looking happier than Yugyeom had ever seen her.

 

"Yeah, but isn't what they're asking him a little too much", his dad said when he'd also read the letter. His mother glared at him.

 

"Honey, they're asking him to spy on the boy", his dad said loudly.

"Because he's a prime suspect, honey. Yugyeom might be able to save a lot of people if he exposes him.."

 

"Even so.. They used to be best friends…. Yugyeom, do you want to do this?", his father asked him, a worried frown on his face. How could Yugyeom say no when his mother was looking at him so desperately, like this was the one thing that would truly make her happy.

 

"Yes."

 

"Oh, Yugyeomie! Don't worry, mom and dad will help you. We'll ask them to come over for dinner, or Jinyoung at least. His parents might be a little harder to convince", his mother said, muttering that last bit.

 

Yugyeom nodded, knowing that the reason Jinyoung's parents wouldn't want to come would be him. The filthy squib, the disappointment of the century. He sighed and headed upstairs, leaving his bickering parents alone.

 

\----

 

Sure enough his parents actually got the Park’s to come over for dinner some days later. Yugyeom stayed relatively calm, considering this would be the first time in a couple of years that he would be in the same room as Jinyoung.

 

It was only when the doorbell rang and his mother yelled for him to come down that Yugyeom's mind actually started working. He started wondering if Jinyoung would actually be a neo-deatheater, if he would be disgusted of Yugyeom.

 

Yugyeom went downstairs and smiled politely at Jinyoung’s parents, who were being enthusiastically welcomed by his mother. They both gave him a thin smile in return, clearly unsure on how to react. Yugyeom's eyes fell on Jinyoung. The other boy deliberately didn't look up.

 

Yugyeom tried not to feel disappointed. He guessed this approach of investigating Jinyoung wouldn’t work then. The pretending to be friends-approach. He guessed he'd have to take the ninja-approach then. Finding out what he was doing without the other boy noticing.

 

Yugyeom involuntarily let out a big sigh and flushed when everyone turned to him.

 

After an incredibly forced conversation between Yugyeom's father and Jinyoung's parents (his father obviously feeling guilty about why they were doing this), with Yugyeom and Jinyoung watching without saying anything Yugyeom's mother called from the kitchen for them to go sit down because dinner was almost ready.

 

Yugyeom sat down at his usual spot, not realizing he'd seated himself in front of Jinyoung until he looked away from the kitchen, where his mother was busy with accioing plates towards herself. He swallowed and considered switching spots, quickly thinking better of it when he realized he'd just be antagonizing himself more if he did that.

 

 

Instead he studied Jinyoung from up close. He was seriously handsome, Yugyeom realized immediately. Flawless skin, good proportions, long eyelashes. Aging had done him good.

 

He didn't look like a deatheater, especially not when he looked at the food Yugyeom's mother brought in so longingly.

 

Those dark eyes suddenly looked into his own so quickly Yugyeom didn't have the chance to avert them. They looked into each other's eyes properly for the first time in five years. Their last horrible conversation entered Yugyeom’s mind again. He swallowed, but didn't look away, instead searching for any sign of emotion in those black dyes.

 

There seemed to be no malice, but neither could Yugyeom see any sign of friendliness.

 

After about ten seconds his mother put the plates in front of them. Yugyeom cleared his throat and uncomfortably looked away. When he dared look up again after some time he swore he saw Jinyoung’s eyes flicker away.

 

So that awkward staring contest hadn't given him any information.

 

"So Jinyoung, how's school?", Yugyeom's mother asked, when they were all about done eating. Yugyeom looked up from his plate for the first time in ten minutes, curious for the answer. Jinyoung opened his mouth to answer, but another voice spoke up.

 

"Wonderful, of course. He's at the top of his class for almost every subject. As is to be expected from a pureblood like my son. He's also very popular among the students. Even the Ravenclaws look up to him. But that is, as I said, to be expected."

Jinyoung’s expression stayed carefully blank the entire time his mother spoke. Nothing betrayed what he really felt. When they were younger Jinyoung used to always complain about being a pureblood, since it came with so many responsibilities, especially in his parent’s eyes. Yugyeom wondered if the title had risen to his head in the end. That the apparent fame had made him blind, even to his own beliefs.

 

Yugyeom's mother let out a forced laugh.

 

"Of course it is. I'm sure you're very proud."

 

"We are."

 

This would be their cue to ask about Yugyeom, but they didn't, of course. Which witch or wizard, especially a pureblood one, would want to know how a squib was doing in muggle school. Yugyeom felt the same shame he hadn't felt for years come up again.

His father's hand grabbed his under table and gave it a comforting squeeze.

 

"Haha, yes. Um, okay. How about Yugyeom and Jinyoung go catch up. Go show him you Kbox, Yugyeomie."

 

Yugyeom instantly forgot all about his shame and couldn’t help the embarrassed moan that escaped his throat.

 

"Mom, it's an Xbox, X! Not K. How many times have I told you?"

 

His mother gave him a half-hearted glare.

 

"Sweetie, that's the first time you've told me-"

 

"No, darling. Yugyeom's right. He's told you a good five times now", his father chuckled. Yugyeom gratefully latched onto his father's support.

"Yeah, mom. Do you know how embarrassing that is? Jackson's still not letting me live it down-"

 

"Jackson. Is that the muggle that often comes by your house?"

 

Yugyeom stared at Jinyoung, who was the one who'd said the words, for a good five second, before finally finding his voice again.

 

"Yeah, he uh, he is. How did you-?"

 

"How about you go to Yugyeom's room", Yugyeom's father said loudly. Yugyeom looked at him and quickly saw the reason for his excessive loudness. Jinyoung’s parents were looking at Yugyeom with a cold, almost hateful, expression.

 

"Yeah, let's go. Follow me", Yugyeom said, abruptly standing up and all but running out of the room.

 

"It's upstairs", he told the other boy distractedly, still remembering the glare Jinyoung's mother had send him.

 

"I think I can remember where your room is, Yugyeom", Jinyoung said dryly.

 

Yugyeom blinked a couple of times, before letting out a small laugh.

 

"Oh, that's right. I'd almost forgotten", he said, going up the stairs, suppressing the urge to take it two steps at a time, for some reason feeling like it wasn't appropriate in Jinyoung’s presence.

 

"Glad to hear I'm that forgettable", Jinyoung said, and Yugyeom was unsure how to react, because he had a strong suspicion that hadn’t been meant as a joke.

 

"Have you ever played a game on the Xbox?", Yugyeom asked when they'd entered the room. Jinyoung shook his head.

 

Yugyeom had already grabbed a controller, before realizing he probably had to ask if Jinyoung was willing. He turned towards Jinyoung, who'd sat down on Yugyeom's bed like he belonged there, as if the five years of no interaction hadn't happened at all. Yugyeom pushed away the feelings that came up, firmly telling himself that this was a job. He was doing this because Jinyoung was a prime suspect for a serious crime. Him sitting on Yugyeom's bed should make him feel uncomfortable, not glad.

 

"What? What is it?", Jinyoung snapped. Yugyeom quickly looked away when he realized he’d been staring at Jinyoung without saying something for way too long.

 

"Do you want to play the Xbox, Jinyoung-ah?", he asked timidly.

 

"Do I want-? What else do you think I sat down for?", Jinyoung asked.

 

"Right", Yugyeom murmured, pushing a controller in Jinyoung's hand.

 

"Say, Yugyeom. How many years older am I again?", Jinyoung asked, sounding almost pleasant this time.

 

Yugyeom knew from experience that the sudden pleasantness wasn't necessarily a good thing.

 

"I’m pretty sure you’re two years older...why?", Yugyeom said, uncertainty apparent in his voice.

 

"If I'm two years older then what does that make me?", Jinyoung asked. Yugyeom was at a complete loss. Was this some kind of joke? Was Jinyoung making fun of him?

The smile slipped of off Jinyoung's face.

"That makes me your hyung, you brat. I'm not 'Jinyoung-ah', I'm ‘Jinyoung-hyung’. _Hyung_.", Jinyoung said moodily, emphasizing the last word. Yugyeom let out a relieved sigh.

 

"Right. Sorry, hyung."

Jinyoung grumbled something, but dropped the matter. Yugyeom put in Mortal Combat and explained the basic controls. He planned on going easy on Jinyoung...until they started the game

Jinyoung beat him the first game. Yugyeom could understand that, he hadn't been playing whole-heartedly and Jinyoung had probably pushed some random buttons that had resulted in the humiliating defeat of Yugyeom's character.

 

"That was beginner's luck", he told Jinyoung, who just gave him a blank look.

 

But then Jinyoung also won the second, third and fourth game. Yugyeom had stopped going easy after the second loss.

 

"Hey, don't worry. It's just beginner's luck", the older boy said with a grin when he noticed the expression on Yugyeom's face.

 

"Are you sure you've never played this?", Yugyeom asked, positively humiliated by the eight brutal 'Finish Him's' his character had already had to endure.

 

"I think you mean: _'Are you sure you've never played this, hyung_?'", Jinyoung said, seemingly very pleased with himself.

 

"Fine. Fine. Hyung. Sorry, I just haven’t had to call someone hyung for a very long time. Most of my friends are from England obviously and Youngjae doesn’t mind. Jackson’s from Hong Kong, so that's not-"

 

"Jackson's Chinese?”, Jinyoung interrupted him abruptly.

 

“Yes…so as I was saying, he’s from Hong Kong, so that’s not necessary either. I’d have to call him ‘Ge Ge’. Can you imagine that?”

 

“You seem to like him a lot, seeing how he comes around here so often.”, Jinyoung said, voice cold as he broke Yugyeom’s character’s spine in the game. Yugyeom let out a frustrated sigh as ‘Finish Him’ flashed across the screen once again.

 

“ObviousI like him. He’s my best friend”, Yugyeom said, belatedly realizing who he was actually talking to.

 

“Really? Are you sure he’s just your friend? I’d be careful if I were you, you could end up just like Cho Chang and Harry Potter”, Jinyoung said, violently finishing Yugyeom’s character. Yugyeom frowned and took his eyes off the screen to look at Jinyoung, finding him already staring straight at him.

 

“What are you even saying? Listen, Jackson and I are just friends. There’s no reason for you to-“, he began firmly, but Jinyoung started talking again, completely ignoring everything Yugyeom had just said.

 

“Except that you could never end up like that, because you’re a squib. And what’s even worse is that you’re a squib hanging around with muggles like _Jackson_.”

 

Jinyoung spoke the name with so much distaste Yugyeom immediately felt his temper rising.

 

“Look, you can insult me all you want, but don’t you dare speak a bad word about my friends”, Yugyeom said angrily.

Jinyoung looked positively bewildered for a second, before standing up and throwing the controller in Yugyeom's lap.

 

"Play by yourself. Or with that muggle when he comes. I didn't want to come to a squib's room anyways."

 

Yugyeom stayed completely frozen, not saying anything even when Jinyoung slammed the door close and yelled at his parents that he was leaving.

 

He tried to sort out his thoughts and firmly reminded himself that he wasn't supposed to take this to heart. He wasn't trying to become friends with Jinyoung again, he was pretending to try and become friends with Jinyoung again.

 

He should probably write a letter to the Ministry about what had happened. The things Jinyoung had snapped at him had been extremely discriminating. Whatever doubts he had had about Jinyoung were now almost completely wiped away. There was indeed a big chance Jinyoung was a neo-deatheater.

 

He quickly did so, willing his hand to stop trembling. In the end it still looked as if it had been written by a six year old who'd just learned how to write. Yugyeom stared at it for a couple of minutes. His eyes fell on the word 'discrimination'.

 

He'd expected it, of course he had, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

 

Yugyeom decided he'd just rewrite the letter in the morning and went to lie down in his bed after putting the letter in a drawer. Laying there all alone he couldn’t help but long for the warm presence of Jackson beside him. He'd call Jackson the next day and invite him over, to tell him all about what had happened and ask for his opinion on the matter. And with that reassuring thought floating in his mind he fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

He rewrote the letter the next morning and put the other one in his drawer. He send a text to Jackson asking him to come over before bringing the letter to his mother, so she could send it by owl. His mother took it and asked him about the day before. Yugyeom shortly told her about it.

 

His mother ruffled his hair comfortingly when she noticed how distressed he was.

 

When he went upstairs again he snorted when he saw how many texts Jackson had send in the short time he’d been gone.

 

_From Jackson_

_10:30 : why? What happened?_  
_10:30 : hello?_  
_10: 30 : yum gummie?_  
_10: 31 : *yugyeomie?_  
_10:31 : i should probably disable autocorrect, my phone called youngjae young jap yesterday HAHA_  
_10: 31 : *haha_  
_10:31 : wth_  
_10:32 : but seriously, what is going on? why aren't u answering?_  
_10:32 : if u don't answer within ten seconds i'm just going to assume you died_  
_10:33 : rip yugyeom_  
_10:34 : i'm coming over. you better still be alive_

Jackson arrived ten minutes later, all but bursting into his room.

 

"So you  _are_ still alive'', Jackson observed, wiping some sweat from his face.

"Did you seriously think I died?"

"You didn't answer!"

 

Even in his current state of distress Yugyeom couldn’t help but laugh at the affronted expression on the older boy's face. Something must have seemed off, though because Jackson grabbed Yugyeom's office chair and seated himself in front of Yugyeom.

 

"Talk to me", he said. Yugyeom let out a big sigh, telling the older boy all about what the Ministry had asked him to do and what had happened the day before. Jackson remained quiet, not interrupting him once. By the end Yugyeom's voice started trembling.

 

Jackson took his hand and squeezed it comfortingly.

 

"Yugyeomie, you know you that you aren't any less than him, right? Just because he's a wizard and you're not doesn’t mean he's more significant than you are. You do realize that, right?", Jackson asked.

 

Yugyeom bit his lip.

 

"Maybe in your eyes, but he thinks-"

 

"I don't care what he thinks. If he thinks he's more important than you, or any other muggle or muggleborn or wizardborn, he's just an idiot. I mean, if he's really a neo-deatheater then he deserves whatever punishment his Ministry has in store for him", Jackson said seriously, all his usual cheerfulness gone.

 

Yugyeom frowned, knowing Jackson was right. He'd asked about the neo-deatheaters and some of the things his parents had told him about them had literally made him sick to his stomach. They'd already tortured one muggleborn into madness, attempted to do so with another one and it was suspected they had something to do with the mysterious disappearance of a muggle family.

 

"I know, but the thought of Jinyoung being a deatheater...Jinyoung. I still can't wrap my head around it. I've told you about him a couple of times, right? I mean, he's a good person...or was, at least", Yugyeom said.

 

"Maybe you should try to investigate him a little more then, before jumping into conclusions. He might have said all those things yesterday because he was frustrated. You were best friends for years and then suddenly you stopped talking. It might have hurt hearing you replaced him", Jackson opted.

 

"You're not a replacement! You're Jackson. My best friend Jackson. He was Jinyoung. You two are literally opposites", Yugyeom immediately protested. Jackson gave him a smile.

 

"I know that. Of course I know that, but he probably doesn't. I mean. How long hadn’t you two talked before yesterday? Five years?"

 

"I don't know, Jackson. I think this is bigger than our previous friendship."

 

"What if it isn't?"

"I'm pretty sure it is."

"You want me to subtly ask him?"

 

Yugyeom wouldn't put it past Jackson. He nearly choked on his own spit in his haste to object.

 

"Are you crazy? I just told you about all the things he said to me yesterday. He's clearly against muggles, you in particular because you hang around with a squib, and you want to go and talk to him. He would bewitch you before you even had the chance to open your mouth!"

 

Jackson chuckled at Yugyeom’s reaction.

“Fine, fine. You don’t have to tell me that. I could’ve guessed by the way he was looking at me just now.”

 

“What?”

“He was just getting out of his house when I arrived. He was totally glaring at me”, Jackson said. Yugyeom frowned, so Jinyoung went somewhere today. To meet with his fellow neo-deatheaters? Could they be planning another assault as they spoke?

 

“You know, this only proves my theory. He’s just pissed off and jealous”, Jackson said, completely unaware of Yugyeom’s worrying thoughts.

 

“Yeah, maybe”, Yugyeom lied, to humor Jackson.  
“Let’s stop talking about this…Do you want to watch a movie?”, he asked. Jackson immediately nodded with a smile and the matter was dropped.

 

* * *

 

Yugyeom seated himself next to his bedroom window with a book in his hands the next morning, looking out of it with every small movement he spotted out of the corner of his eyes. Yugyeom was just starting to curse each dove that caused him to unnecessarily look up when his neighbor’s door opened.

 

Yugyeom swallowed when Jinyoung stepped out. He couldn't see his face from this distance, but his posture betrayed his tenseness. Was he nervous or something, afraid of getting caught? Yugyeom looked at him until he rounded a corner. He was confused. If Jinyoung really was tense about being caught then why didn’t he just appparate?

 

A sudden thought hit Yugyeom. He’d once read that under aged wizards (wizards under nineteen, the age had been changed from seventeen to nineteen after the battle of Hogwarts) were not allowed to use magic outside of school. He’d read it in A History of Hogwarts way back when he still had hope of becoming a wizard.

 

He wrote another short message for the Ministry and went to give it to his mom.

 

"I think I'll follow him in a couple of days, to see where he goes", he informed her.

 

"So you aren’t going to talk to him again?" She sounded disappointed. He shook his head. He'd tried the _pretend to be friends-method_ and it had been horrible. He wasn’t going to go to Jinyoung first, since that'd probably just result in more insults getting thrown at him.

 

He was going to try and spy on Jinyoung from afar instead. _Ninja style._

 

"Okay, Yugyeomie. Whatever you think is best", she said, clearly not agreeing at all.

 

* * *

 

The pattern repeated the next couple of days, Jinyoung left his house in the morning and came back very late.

The fifth day Yugyeom pulled on a hoodie, with a cap he could pull all the way over his face. He prayed Jinyoung wouldn't find that suspicious. If a guy in a hoodie followed Yugyeom around he'd quickly grow antsy, but that was because of the muggle movies and shows he watched. The suspicious guy always wore things like that.

 

He was positive Jinyoung had never watched those.

 

He put on a pair of sunglasses for good measure and waited for Jinyoung to exit his house. When an hour had passed Yugyeom became anxious. What if he there was no meeting today, what if Jinyoung had just gone shopping the past few days, what if-?

 

But then the door opened again, in his haste to run downstairs and follow he almost missed the way Jinyoung slammed the door closed. He didn’t have much time to dwell on it, his mind already calculating the number of meters he'd have to put between himself and Jinyoung to not come off as suspicious.

 

In the end he decided a good fifteen meter should do. He kept his head down, even though that probably wasn't really necessary because he was pretty sure he was almost unrecognizable with the cap of his hoodie pulled over his face and the sunglasses covering his eyes.

 

He followed Jinyoung for a good ten minutes, nerves coursing through him. This could be his chance to catch the guy red handed, he had his cellphone ready to capture the moment Jinyoung did whatever illegal thing he meant to do as a neo-deatheater.

 

Yugyeom frowned when they came out in a shopping street. It was so busy he could hardly see Jinyoung anymore. He cursed himself for putting so much distance between him and Jinyoung. That had been a serious miscalculation on his part.

 

He gently tried to push some people aside, so he could shorten the distance, keeping his eyes trained in the back on Jinyoung's head.

 

He had to avert them, however, when he collided with an old lady. He helped her regain her balance and apologized, quickly looking up again, his eyes searching for the familiar black hair. He distractedly mumbled another apology to the grumbling lady and sighed when he realized he'd lost the older boy.

 

He pulled off his hoodie and was about to apologize again to the lady who'd started a short rant when someone yelling made him halt.

 

"Yugyeom-ah!"

 

He looked at the source and saw that it was Youngjae, waving at him from the other side of the street. He smiled and waved back.

 

He bowed one last time to the woman and then, after checking for cars, ran towards Youngjae.

"What are you doing here, Gyeom-ah?", his friends asked enthusiastically after having shortly hugged him, as if it had been longer than a week since he'd seen Yugyeom.

 

"Oh, you know...just shopping", he lied, trying to not show how disappointed he was about losing Jinyoung. Youngjae didn’t notice, or at least didn’t mention it if he had.

 

"You want to drink some coffee? I think we're blocking the pavement", Youngjae smiled.

 

Yugyeom nodded and followed his friend into the closest coffee shop. He was sure talking with Youngjae would somewhat distract him from his failed spying attempt.

 

"I'm surprised you haven't contacted me yet, though. Usually I get a " _i miss you, hyung. let's hang out_ ' about three days into the vacation.", Youngjae said semi-hurt as they went to sit down with their coffee (or in Yugyeom’s case, hot chocolate, he didn’t really like coffee, sue him)

 

"Oh yeah, I guess I've just been busy."

Youngjae pouted, taking a sip from his Americano.

 

"Busy enough to completely forget about one of your best friends."

"Of course no-."

"No, I see how it is. I'll just continue living my life being neglected by you."

Yugyeom giggled at the dramatic tone.

 

"Always the drama queen. One would think a person would outgrow that when they’ve passed fourteen and yet here you are. The living proof that that is not the case", he joked.

 

Youngjae gasped and their play fight went on for a little while. It ended, as most of their conversations did, in both of them giggling.

 

They sat in silence for a little while, just enjoying each other’s company. Yugyeom had to admit he'd missed Youngjae, even if it had only been a week.

 

"Don't look now, but there's a really weird person behind the window. He's been staring at us for about a minute now."

 

Yugyeom frowned. It couldn't be… No, he was facing the other way and there was no way that Jinyoung, if it was him, could recognize him by the back of his head.

 

He resolutely stared at Youngjae, who was also frowning slightly.

 

"What is he wearing? Oh, he's leaving. Yugyeom, are you o-. Oh no, never mind. He just entered. Jesus, why does he look so angry...he's heading towards us. What the hell, why is he heading towards us?"

 

Yugyeom's heartbeat had picked up allarmingly during Youngjae's freak out.

 

"Oh haha, yeah and then I told him to take the thing anyway, because how could he know his girlfriend didn’t like it if he didn’t show her, you know?", Youngjae said, way too loudly to come off as natural.

 

A shadow had fallen over them and Yugyeom knew Jinyoung was currently standing behind him.

He flinched when he spoke up.

 

“Yugyeom.”

Nothing in his voice betrayed how he felt, but judging from what Youngjae had just said he was pissed. He closed his eyes and burrowed his face in his hands for a while, mentally preparing for an excuse. There was no way he could say he’d come with Youngjae. He didn’t want Youngjae to have to lie for him. Partly because his friend was too innocent and nice for that and also because Youngjae was just a really shit liar. His other option was to be partly honest.

 

“Yugyeom, do you know him?”, Youngjae asked quietly. Yugyeom nodded, finally gathering up the courage to look at the wizard. He was met with an unreadable look. He fidgeted uncomfortably, turning back to Youngjae.

 

“Say, Youngjae, how about you go on with what you were doing. I’ll just stay here to catch up with…my friend”, he said hesitantly.

“You’re not gonna introduce me?”, Youngjae asked, but after a short look at Jinyoung’s face he seemed to change his mind.

“Never mind. I’m gonna just…go. Contact me?”, Youngjae asked, standing up. Jinyoung took his place almost immediately, staring at Yugyeom. His friend raised his eyebrows and squeezed Yugyeom’s shoulder when he nodded.

 

“Bye.”

Yugyeom bit his lip nervously when Youngjae left the shop.

 

“Why were you following me?”, Jinyoung asked. Yugyeom tried not to show his surprise.

 

“Why? Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”, Jinyoung asked dryly. Yugyeom suddenly felt really stupid. He’d been watching ‘Healer’ last night and had been inspired. He decided to never put his faith in dramas ever again, no matter how good they were.

 

“If you want to follow someone undetected, you shouldn’t put on clothes like that. It just makes you stand out even more”, Jinyoung sighed. Yugyeom looked down at his black outfit, realizing Jinyoung was right. It was kinda ironic that Jinyoung was telling him that, seeing how he wasn’t used to muggle fashion. He was currently wearing a silver shirt and green pants, an obvious reference to his house.  
Yugyeom was sure he’d look fashionable in the eyes of a wizard, but it came off as pretty eccentric in those of a muggle.

 

“So I repeat my previous question, why were you following me?”

 

What the hell was he supposed to say? He couldn’t tell the truth. He couldn’t even imagine having to tell his mother he failed the one thing she really wanted him to succeed in. He could just lie and try to make up, going back to the _pretending to be friends-_ method. The _ninja-_ method was obviously not going to work. Yugyeom just wasn't cut out for it. 

 

“I wanted to…apologize. I didn’t really know how to approach you. I mean, I can’t exactly go to your house…You know how your parents are. I mean, obviously you know how your parents are, they’re your parents. I mean you know how your parents thinks. When I saw you leave and I thought it’d be a good idea to follow and talk to you on the way, but then I lost you because some old lady started yelling at me and then I met Youngjae and we talked. You saw me…or us and you came inside this shop and now we’re sitting in front of each other.”

The hard look in Jinyoung's eyes had gradually softened.

 

"Still, following me all the way over here. Kinda creepy, Yugyeom", Jinyoung said, the spite out of his voice now. Yugyeom knew he had him almost convinced.

 

"Yeah, I just...I don’t know, hyung...It seemed like the best plan", he sighed, faking a pout. His heart still hadn't completely calmed down.

 

"Okay. I get why you didn't want to come to my house. Just...don't do things like that, it really creeps me out, man."

 

Yugyeom gave a small nod, keeping his head down, irrationally scared Jinyoung would find the truth written on Yugyeom's face.

 

"So you wanted to apologize for-?"

 

"For saying all that stuff to you all those years ago...I shouldn't have accused you like that…” Yugyeom realized that wasn’t going to be good enough ,“and last week when I got angry."

 

He didn’t regret getting angry at all. Jinyoung had disrespected his best friend, getting angry had been justified. All the shit Jinyoung had said had not been.

 

"It's fine, Yugyeom. I guess I'm also-"

He stopped talking. Yugyeom looked up, curious and almost daring to hope. Jinyoung was wearing a frown and quickly looked away when Yugyeom caught his gaze.

 

"Never mind."

 

Yugyeom grit his teeth, angry at Jinyoung and himself. What had he expected, an apology? Apologizing had never been Jinyoung's strongest point, so why would he do it now?

 

"But hyung, why are you here?", he asked, trying to keep his tone indifferent.

 

"I don't think that’s any of your business", Jinyoung said, cold edge back in his tone. Yugyeom blinked at the sudden change in demeanor. Why was he so defensive about it? Had he really been planning to do something illegal?

 

Yugyeom thought back to the muggleborn girl who'd been tortured into madness. Had Jinyoung been part of the group that had done that to her? Laughing as she screamed out in pain and sobbed for mercy? Yugyeom felt sick.

 

"Look, this was a nice talk and all, but I'm gonna get goi-", Jinyoung spoke up, already getting out of his chair. Yugyeom grabbed his arm, determined to keep Jinyoung from whatever he was about to go do.

 

"Looking like that?", he blurted out.

 

"'L _ooking like that, hyung?_ '", the older boy corrected agitatedly, before seemingly realizing what Yugyeom had just said. An offended expression appeared on his face.

 

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

 

"It's just that you look a bit weird, hyung?", Yugyeom hissed. Jinyoung sat down again.

 

"I don't look weird. I look amazing, this is from the most recent collection in-.", he protested.

 

"Yeah, maybe for wizarding tastes. But seriously hyung, my friend just now told me you were wearing weird clothes. And frankly, I think he's right.", Yugyeom said, not having to lie. He'd become so used to muggle fashion that Jinyoung did look very weird.

 

"Do you think I care about what muggles think of me?", Jinyoung asked, but Yugyeom could practically see the inner turmoil. It seemed that only happened when Jinyoung's pride was on the line.

 

"Hyung, we're literally surrounded by normal peo- muggles. Every single person here is questioning your sanity right now", Yugyeom said, totally exaggerating. He'd seen people, normal people, dressed weirder than Jinyoung.

 

Jinyoung was silent for a second, a look of horror on his face. Then he cleared his throat.

 

"Now that I look at these clothes, I have to admit they're a little too flashy for my tastes. I should probably buy some new ones."

 

Yugyeom quickly latched onto the opportunity.

 

"Yeah, you should! Should I come with you? I know all about what normal people wear...hyung", he added belatedly. He was already starting to think of pleas and arguments to convince the older boy when Jinyoung nodded.

 

"Yeah, that might be best. Let's go."

 

Yugyeom quickly downed the rest of his, now cold, hot chocolate and followed Jinyoung out.

"I'm just doing this because these clothes really aren't my taste", Jinyoung said, as if Yugyeom had questioned his motives.

 

"Of course, hyung", he said, happy now that he'd stopped Jinyoung for the time being. Now he just had to keep him busy for a couple of hours.


	3. Chapter 3

Keeping Jinyoung busy turned out to be easier than he’d suspected. Jinyoung himself was the one who kept fitting new clothes. They'd already wasted an hour and a half in the first store. Yugyeom followed the other boy around from store to store, bored out of his mind but happy Jinyoung wasn’t doing anything illegal at least.

 

In the fourth store he took his phone out of his backpack (which he'd filled with pepper spray, bandages etc.) while Jinyoung was in the fitting room, seeing that Youngjae had send him some texts as well.

 _From Youngjae_  
_16:20 : who was that guy?_  
_16:20 : he looked really angry_  
_16:30 : you're okay, right?_  
_16:32 : yum gummy?_  
_16:34 : *yugyeomie?_  
_17:02 : oh my god, pls answer. i'm freaking out right now thinking i left you alone with some serial killer or something_

 

Yugyeom laughed. Why did his friends always think he'd died when he didn't answer in time?

 

 _To Youngjae_  
_17:18 : i'm fine. I'm now shopping with said serial killer, so don’t worry. he probably won't be able to kill me with a clothes hanger_

 

When he send it he realized how late it'd gotten. He and Jinyoung had been together for over four hours already.

 

"Are you texting Jackson", a voice right next to his ear asked. Yugyeom flinched away from the warm breath ghosting over his ear, glaring slightly at a grinning Jinyoung.

 

"No", he said defensively. Jinyoung's grin dropped off his face and he shrugged. The older boy was wearing a new outfit, the one he’d brought in the first store after asking Yugyeom if it was good. The younger didn’t even have to lie when he agreed. It might not exactly be something Yugyeom would buy, but he could easily see Jackson wearing that. He wisely decided not to mention it.

 

"Hyung, can we go home? We've already done four stores and it's getting late."

 

"Fine. Let me just buy these clothes real quick and then we can go...or you can head back by yourself. I don't care."

 

"No, I'll stay!", Yugyeom said, almost too quick. He’d already come this far, he'd keep accompanying Jinyoung until he saw the other boy enter his house and not some sort of abandoned rail house  
Jinyoung gave him a strange look before he went to pay for the clothes.

 

Yugyeom attempted to coax Jinyoung into conversation the entire way home.

 

“Your mom said you were at the top of the class. How’d that happen? I mean, you never tried that hard when we were younger”, Yugyeom asked after three failed attempts of trying to make Jinyoung talk.

 

After a long silence, in which Yugyeom was sure he’d somehow managed to ask the wrong question once again, Jinyoung spoke up.

 

“I don’t know, I guess I just grew up and realized I couldn’t keep disappointing my parents.”

 

Out of all the answers Yugyeom had expected, this was the one he’d least expected. The younger Jinyoung hadn’t given two shits about what his pretentious parents thought about him.

 

“Disappointing your parents by not being the best?”, Yugyeom asked.

 

Another silence.

 

“Yes.”

 

It came out sounding so small and un-like Jinyoung, Yugyeom had to repress the urge to put a hand on the older boy’s shoulder in comfort. He knew Jinyoung wouldn’t like being comforted by someone like Yugyeom. Besides, he wasn’t doing this for sentimental reasons. Jinyoung cleared his throat when Yugyeom didn’t say anything.

 

“But you know, it comes with a lot of benefits. Half the school looks up to me. Almost all the girls in my year want to get into my pants because they think I’ll become Ministry of Magic one day.”

 

Jinyoung laughed and Yugyeom snorted, more out of surprise at Jinyoung’s sudden change of demeanor than amusement.

 

“What about you?”, Jinyoung asked. Yugyeom looked at him, question clear on his face.

 

“How are you doing in school?”, he clarified.

 

For a second Yugyeom was sure this was some joke. That Jinyoung had only tolerated Yugyeom around him just so he could make fun of him in the end, showing the memory to his fellow deatheaters later on. There was no way Jinyoung would otherwise be asking how a squib was doing in muggle school. He warily looked at Jinyoung again and was surprised at the genuine curiosity he saw on in his eyes.

 

“Fine”, he said shortly, still suspicious.  
Jinyoung let out an annoyed sigh.

 

“Seriously? That’s all you’re gonna give me? I open up my heart to you and you say: ‘Fine’.

 

“Because it is. I’m not the best in my class, not even by a long shot. I’m just mediocre. I have a couple of close friends and no one is trying to get into my pants. Not as far as I know, anyway”, he shrugged, now that he no longer felt like he was going to be the punchline of Jinyoung’s joke.

 

Jinyoung didn’t say anything for a while and Yugyeom knew he was being stared at, he didn’t look back, feeling slightly ashamed for some reason.

 

Jackson’s words suddenly entered his mind again.  
_"Yugyeomie, you know you that you aren't any less than him, right? Just because he's a wizard and you're not doesn’t mean he's more significant than you are. You do realize that, right?_ "

He quickly latched onto them and let out a small, relieved sigh when they arrived at home. They both started going towards both their respective houses when a thought entered Yugyeom’s mind. He’d kept Jinyoung busy well enough today, maybe he should try doing that for some time.

 

That way he could gain Jinyoung’s trust, maybe get him to confess and make sure he didn’t do any more things to hurt other people in the process.

 

“Hyung!”, he yelled, just when Jinyoung was opening his front door. Jinyoung turned to him.

 

“What is it?”

 

“Do you want to come over tomorrow? To play another game?”, Yugyeom asked. He uncomfortably thought back on what Jinyoung had hissed to him during their last fight.  
_“I didn't want to come to a squib's room anyways."_

 

“Yeah, sure. When should I-? No, I’ll come when I want to, okay?”, Jinyoung said. Yugyeom nodded and for a second he thought Jinyoung shot him a genuine smile, but the wizard had stepped inside before he could make sure. Yugyeom frowned, annoyed at his own mind for being so sensitive it made him see things he foolishly wanted to see when it came to Jinyoung.

* * *

 

The next morning he wrote another letter to the Ministry, telling them what happened the day before and of his plan. He went downstairs to give the letter to his mother, who was making breakfast in the kitchen.

 

“What are you planning, Yugyeomie?”

 

Just when he was about to explain the backdoor from the garden to the kitchen opened. Jinyoung stepped through, the wizard fidgeted and put his hands in the pockets of his new pants when he noticed the dumbfounded expression on their face.

 

“Oh, so…sorry. I just…I used to always come through here. Guess it’s force of habit”, he let out an awkward laugh. Yugyeom quickly joined and gave him mother a pointed look. She took the hint, subtly putting the letter under one of the pots and joining Jinyoung and Yugyeom in their forced laughter.

 

Jinyoung’s gaze flickered down to the pot for a second, but he didn’t seem concerned as he just continued speaking.

  
“Anyways, I’m really sorry, misses Kim. You must have been shocked.”  
Yugyeom, who’d had a small heart attack when he saw the small, but unmistakable movement of Jinyoung’s eyes, finally felt like he wasn’t about to die at any second.

 

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Jinyoungie. Yugyeom’s friends do this all the time. No, actually it’s only Jackson. Youngjae has manners and actually rings the doorbell before he enters. Jackson just barges in like he owns the place”, Yugyeom’s mother sighed, but the look in her eyes betrayed her. It was soft. She’d gown attached to the Chinese boy over the four years he’d been visiting them weekly.

 

Yugyeom turned to Jinyoung, not even surprised to see the cold expression he was wearing anymore. It seemed he always got like that whenever Jackson was mentioned.

 

“You’re here already, hyung?”, he asked. It was barely 10 o’clock. Jinyoung opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again after a look at Yugyeom’s mother. The younger boy was almost amused at the way Jinyoung seemed to have to almost physically contain himself from saying whatever rude thing he’d been about to say.

 

“I just felt like coming, since it’s been so long”, he murmured eventually, as if that’d charm Yugyeom’s mother. She smiled, but Yugyeom saw the underlying wariness in her eyes. He also felt it. When she’d told him about the neo-deatheaters, she’d clearly been on the verge of being sick. The thought of one of the monsters who’d done the act being in their house was indeed sickening, especially since it was the boy they’d always welcomed in their house when he was younger, who they’d basically seen grow up.

 

“Do you want to have breakfast with us?”, Yugyeom choked out. Jinyoung’s smile faltered for a second, before he nodded with an even brighter one. Yugyeom wondered why he was putting up such a show in front of his mother. Was it because she was a pureblood?

 

Probably.

 

The reason he acted like such a dick in front of Yugyeom was because he didn’t feel the need to cover up his real nature in front of a squib. That thought caused Yugyeom to poke around his food without actually eating much.

 

Yugyeom’s mom was trying hard to show interest in Jinyoung and the other boy was actually being responsive. That only caused Yugyeom’s mood to drop even more.

 

When his mother went to the bathroom for a minute, taking the letter with her, Jinyoung kicked his shin. Yugyeom hissed from the painful sting that naturally followed.

 

“Ow! What the hell was that for?”, he snapped. Jinyoung raised him eyebrows and Yugyeom bit his lip, before giving in.

 

“Ow! What the hell was that for, _hyung_?”, he asked, but he still couldn’t quite keep the snide out of his voice.

 

“Good boy “, Jinyoung praised him and Yugyeom’s heart decided to skip a beat on that exact moment. He wisely chose to ignore it.

 

“Jesus fucking Christ, Yugyeom. Your mother made you a meal. The least you can do is pretend to enjoy it. You don’t have to be so rude about it.”

 

“Are you scolding me right now because I’m being rude? You, Park Jinyoung, are scolding me, Kim Yugyeom, because I’m being rude?”

 

Yugyeom couldn’t quite believe it, even as he said it.

“Just eat your food and enjoy it”, he heard Jinyoung say as he was staring at his mostly untouched food.

 

“Right, hyung. Right”, he sighed eventually. He shouldn’t get angry at Jinyoung, if he did there was no way Jinyoung would want to hang around him anymore and then Yugyeom was out of options.

When his mother returned Yugyeom was almost done. She smiled at him and gave him an almost invisible nod. Yugyeom smiled back. So the letter had been send.

 

When they were done eating Yugyeom loudly thanked his mother for the delicious meal. His mother seemed a little put off, but nodded. On their way to his room Yugyeom got a harsh pinch. He rubbed his ass, which was of course the place he’d gotten the pinch, and gave the other boy a glare.

“Should’ve been subtle about it.”

Yugyeom could just push Jinyoung. That’d wipe that smug grin right off his face. He turned around and stormed up the stairs, so he couldn’t give into the desire and possibly get murdered by Jinyoung’s parents.

 

He was already busy searching for Minecraft between his numerous Xbox games when Jinyoung entered, it was a game he couldn’t lose at. He’d just let Jinyoung play. Minecraft was addictive as hell, Yugyeom knew from experience, he’d wasted more than one day away playing it. He had gotten tired of it after about a month, but that was all the time he needed Jinyoung with him anyway.

 

“What will we be playing today?”, Jinyoung asked, seating himself in front of the bed.

 

“Minecraft”, Yugyeom answered, inserting the game. He handed Jinyoung the controller and sat down next to him. He explained the basic controls and what he was supposed to do.

 

“You can choose between ‘Survival’ and ‘Creative’. If you choose the first one your goal is to survive, so you have to eat and make sure you don’t get attacked by monsters and all that jazz. If you pick ‘Creative’ you don’t have to worry about all that. You just have to build. You can make castles and even cities-”, he explained.

 

“What about this one? ‘Hardcore’?”, Jinyoung asked, hovering over the option.

 

“Oh no, I wouldn’t pick that one. It’s basically the same as ‘Survival’, except that you only have one life. It sucks. I always die immediately.”

 

And of course, of fucking course, Jinyoung picked that one. Yugyeom shouldn’t even be surprised anymore.

 

The only good thing was that he died within five minutes. He glared at Yugyeom when he started laughing at him. The younger boy got the remote pushed back into his hands. For a second he was afraid he’d gotten the wizard angry again and that he’d leave.

 

“You try it then, if you think it’s so funny.”

 

Yugyeom did. He, naturally, didn’t last much longer. His hate for the ‘Hardcore’ mode only grew when he heard Jinyoung’s mocking laughter.

 

“At least I lived longer than you, hyung”, he said when Jinyoung was done.

 

“Give me that, you brat. I’ll show you”, Jinyoung said, but there was no snarl in his voice. He sounded almost amused. Yugyeom couldn’t help but grin.

 

They spend the next hours trying to beat each other’s record in staying alive the longest, howling with laughter when one of them managed to die within a couple of minute by sheer stupidity (falling into a cliff, staying underwater for too long, etc.).

 

In the end it was Jinyoung who held the record, he’d managed to stay alive for forty five minutes. Yugyeom whined the entire last ten minutes.

 

“I could’ve easily done that too if that creeper hadn’t been there last time.-”  
“-seriously hyung, you don’t have to show off. You’ve won. Now die and give me a chance-.”  
“-I’m sure I’ve stayed alive for over two hours when I was playing this alone.”

 

Jinyoung snorted when Yugyeom said (whined) that last sentence.

 

“I thought you said you always died immediately?”, he teased.

 

“I’ve never said that, ever , in my entire life. Jinyoung, that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard you say to this date”, Yugyeom lied. Jinyoung temporarily took his hands off the controller, to put Yugyeom in a headlock for not using honorifics, when a creeper showed up. Yugyeom was free in a matter of milliseconds, but Jinyoung was too late. The creeper blew up before he could get the character to safety.

 

“Jinyoung-hyung, you’re such an idiot”, Yugyeom laughed, rolling away when Jinyoung grabbed for him again with a downright murderous expression on his face.

 

“I had it. You goddamn brat, I had it”, he growled, standing up. Yugyeom stared up at him with an alarmed expression. The older boy sounded genuinely mad. He’d probably taken it too far. Had the shorter boy taken his wand with him? Yugyeom didn’t see it, but he knew some wizards had small, nearly invisible bags they put it in.

 

“Yah, what do you have to say for yourself? What will you do to make this right?”, Jinyoung said loudly, poking his foot into Yugyeom’s abdomen. It wasn’t hard, though. Yugyeom almost let out a relieved sigh when he realized Jinyoung was just playing around. Before he was able to answer his mother yelled for them to come eat. Yugyeom looked at his watch with a frown. It was already half past five. They’d skipped lunch, since Yugyeom was well stocked on bags of chips and they’d made use of them.

 

“I’ll make sure to pretend to enjoy it this time”, Yugyeom told Jinyoung on their way down.

“You better.”

Yugyeom giggled and it was only when he’d eaten and let Jinyoung out with a smile that he realized he hadn’t asked Jinyoung about anything. What the hell was he going to write to the ministry?

 

 _Dear Ministry,_  
_Me and prime suspect Park Jinyoung played the muggle game Minecraft today. I saw many hints of the deatheater hiding inside of him, seeing how he won the game in the end._  
_Kim Yugyeom_

 

He almost laughed. Yeah no, there was no way he was sending that. He’d just have to find out more the next couple of days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will probably take some time, since I have exams in two days :/  
> I hope everyone's still enjoying it ~

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like I took writing this way too seriously, because I went deep. I hope you're all as into HP as me, bc I'm going full on geek with this one, as you've probably noticed. 
> 
> But anyways, please let me know what you think and don't be shy to contact me on [tumblr](http://chimchimerie.tumblr.com/).


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